Carlsbad Irrigation District

Carlsbad Irrigation District, a tax-exempt nonprofit irrigation district headquartered in Carlsbad, New Mexico, receives federal grant and purchase-order funding from the Department of the Interior's Bureau of Reclamation and the Bureau of Land Management for water conservation and canal infrastructure projects across its service area. The district does not operate as a federal contractor or subcontractor; all seven awards in the source record are prime grants or purchase orders, with no sub-award activity.

The district's recent federal footprint centers on water-infrastructure development funded through the WaterSMART program (CFDA 15.507). The Bureau of Reclamation awarded a $2.61 million Project Grant (award date October 30, 2023, ultimate completion March 31, 2025) to install 58 automated gates along the district's main canal and implement a supervisory control and data acquisition system, with the project expected to reduce annual water loss by 2,245 acre-feet and minimize supplemental groundwater pumping. A second Bureau of Reclamation grant of $183,914.60 (award date September 17, 2024, ultimate completion March 31, 2025) funds 2,000 feet of main-canal lining to reduce seepage and improve canal efficiency for agricultural water users. Most recently, the Department of the Interior's Idaho Region Bureau of Land Management issued a $1,200 firm-fixed-price purchase order (award date May 1, 2026, ultimate completion August 15, 2026) for dip-site work in Boise, Idaho.

The district's customer base is entirely within the Department of the Interior, with the Bureau of Reclamation accounting for six of seven awards and the combined potential value. Activity is sparse and episodic — one award annually or less across the five-year window — but obligated dollars ($2.9 million) substantially exceed combined potential value, indicating that the district's smaller awards often carry higher invoiced rates or that completion estimates have been conservative. The district functions as a recipient of federal grant capital for water-conservation infrastructure rather than as a service or goods vendor to federal agencies.